Contents

Old vs. new atheism

It is a matter of some debate whether the term "new atheism" should even exist. There has been no philosophical revolution in recent years; the arguments used by atheists today are not radically different from ones used in past decades and centuries.

The main difference in the new atheism seems to be an unwillingness to remain silent in order to get along with theists. Such a conciliatory attitude, many believe, prevents atheists' voice from being heard in the political and social arena. This has led to some backlash by those who believe that such outspokenness is perceived as being confrontational, and hurts the acceptance of atheism.

Organization

None.

Causes

Aims

It is, of course, difficult to ascertain the aims or goals of a putative movement with no manifesto, no central authority, no definite beginning, and no obvious cause. What follows is simply a summary of ideas that seem to have gained popularity in recent years.

Religion's place of prominence

One common idea in the new atheism is that religion has enjoyed a privileged position in public discourse: that one does not criticize religion in the same way that one might criticize a movie, a philosophy, or a political movement. People like Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris have argued[1] that this respect is undeserved, and that religion assertions must be subjected to the same scrutiny as any other assertion of fact. As a result, Dawkins is often accused of being "shrill" or angry, while others believe he is merely being forthright.

In a similar vein, in Breaking the Spell, Daniel Dennett argues that religion can and should be studied like any other phenomenon; not in the sense of theology, but rather the psychology, sociology, neurology, anthropology, etc. of religion.

Promoting acceptance of atheism

Few prominent atheists believe that religion can be completely eliminated any time soon, or that there will ever be a time when a majority of people count themselves as atheists.

However, religious figures have always portrayed atheism as undesirable, if not downright evil and immoral. The new atheism seeks to increase public acceptance of atheism, in the same way that the gay rights movement seeks to gain public acceptance of homosexuality.

Promoting rationality

Prominent atheists all seem to endorse rational thinking and science as the best way to know about the world (as opposed to intuition, for example). However, there has long been significant overlap between rationalism and atheism, so this is not something new to the new atheism, but rather a continuation of earlier themes.

This may also be caused by the fact that atheists who subscribe to irrational or supernatural beliefs often call themselves something else, e.g., "Buddhist" or "Raelian".

Resources

Books

A number of books supportive of atheism have become best-sellers in the United States and elsewhere, including: